Healthy Takeout Meals

Fast and furious – does that describe your average weekday or even your eating style? In today’s 24/7 world, most of us simply don’t have time to cook every meal or prepare packed lunches at home. While takeout meals may not be quite as healthy and economical as a well-planned homemade meal, you can do takeout without ruining your healthy eating plan.

The American Cancer Society offers several tips and tricks for navigating takeout menus. Portion control and avoiding high fat foods with hidden calories are two important factors: split an entrée or order an appetizer portion, and look for red flags in menu descriptions such as pan-fried or deep-fried, battered, breaded, creamy or buttery. Choose white meats and seafood over red meat, clear broth soups over creamed, and condiments like mustard and relish over mayonnaise. If you follow these guidelines, you can enjoy a wide variety of cuisines and timesaving takeout meals. Here are a few of our favorites:

Chinese and Thai

Two of the healthiest and most popular takeout options, Chinese and Thai food can be high in sodium so go for the green, and as with all cuisines, choose vegetable dishes, white meat or seafood. Watch out for coconut in Thai dishes, and don’t drench your satay in peanut sauce. Want wonton or egg drop noodle soup? Order the small bowl instead of the big one. Choose summer rolls—the ones with rice paper and fresh veggies—over egg rolls, which are deep-fried. If you must have rice, order steamed brown rice over white or fried, and use sauces sparingly as they are often high in salt.

Deli/Grocery Store

Salads, sandwiches, soups, and rotisserie chicken are your main options here. Choose whole grain or whole wheat bread, go for low-fat or vinaigrette salad dressing, and clear soups. For sandwiches, opt for mustard over mayo and turkey or chicken over roast beef and ham. Peel back the skin from your rotisserie chicken to save calories.

Indian

Indian food offers a wide variety of vegetarian dishes without sacrificing flavor, and since a lot of Indian food is spicy, there’s a good chance you won’t eat a huge portion. If you can’t stay away from meat, grab some Tandoori: this clay oven cooking technique produces tender, juicy morsels in dishes like chicken tikka (marinated chicken) and kebab, but skip the yogurt sauce to avoid calorie angst.

Mexican & Salvadorian

Cheese, sauces, sour cream, and fried tortilla chips or taco shells are big culprits in Mexican and Central American food, so ditch the nachos and pile on the salsa. Can’t get enough guacamole? Luckily it’s pretty nutritious, but it’s also high in calories so limit your portion. Other tricks: Get your tacos with fish or chicken instead of beef, order your pupusa with beans instead of pork, pick whole black beans over refried, and choose whole wheat or corn tortillas over floured or fried.

Pizza

A traditional family favorite, pizza is doable if you indulge wisely. Ask for half the cheese or even part-skim cheese, and, instead of ordering something meaty, go for a green, leafy vegetable. Spinach and feta, for instance, is a winning combination. Choose thin crust and avoid stuffed crust pizza, and for extra measure, pat your pizza with a napkin to wipe off the excess grease.